Mumbai, July 22 (IANS) The Maharashtra government on Wednesday launched the Rs 36,585 crore ‘Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Farmer Loan Waiver Scheme 2026.’ Announcing the state‑level launch at a press conference, Minister for Co‑operation Babasaheb Patil released a representative list of eligible beneficiaries across seven districts.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister Patil stated that the representative list was being released to mark the birthday of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and the birth anniversary of the late Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Under the leadership of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Ajit Pawar, the state government has taken a historic decision to grant loan waivers of up to Rs 2 lakh to approximately 56 lakh eligible farmer families.
Highlighting the scope of the initiative, the Co‑operation Minister emphasised that the scheme is not limited to debt relief alone, but aims to reduce the financial strain on farmers and empower them to resume farming with renewed energy. He noted that the Co‑operation Department has been working on a war footing. The scheme was approved during the Cabinet meeting held on June 2, 2026, and its criteria were partially revised through a Government Resolution (GR) on July 15, 2026.
To execute the loan waiver and One Time Settlement (OTS) components, 53 banks – including 30 District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs), 12 nationalised banks and several private banks – uploaded farmer loan account details onto a portal developed by MahaIT. All loan accounts from the DCCBs were thoroughly audited by officials from the Co‑operation Department. Additionally, information regarding ineligible applicants has been uploaded to the portal. The exclusion list includes former and sitting public representatives, office bearers of local self‑government bodies, government and semi‑government employees, taxpayers with non‑agricultural income, and office bearers or employees of cooperative institutions such as DCCBs, urban cooperative banks, sugar factories, spinning mills, dairy unions and agricultural produce market committees, said the minister.
Following digital analysis of the compiled data, the final list of eligible beneficiaries was prepared. In the first phase, a representative list of 532 eligible beneficiaries across seven districts has been published.
Eligible farmers will receive SMS notifications on their registered mobile numbers for Aadhaar authentication. The lists of eligible beneficiaries will also be made available at local Gram Panchayats, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) and respective bank branches, Minister Patil added.
Each beneficiary will be assigned a unique identification number. Farmers can complete their Aadhaar authentication using either their Aadhaar number or this unique ID. The service has been made accessible across approximately 32,000 Aaple Sarkar Seva Kendras in the state. However, prior registration on the AgriStack platform is mandatory. Upon successful completion of Aadhaar authentication, the relief amount will be directly deposited into the beneficiaries’ loan accounts via Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
The process for eligible beneficiaries in all District Central Cooperative Banks across the state is scheduled for completion by July 31, 2026, after which the disbursement process for commercial bank accounts will commence.
Commending the officials, Minister Patil expressed his appreciation for Co‑operation Department Secretary Pravin Darade, Co‑operation Commissioner Deepak Taware and the entire department machinery for their continuous monitoring and district‑level coordination, which ensured the swift and effective implementation of this ambitious welfare scheme.
–IANS
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